Author
Topic: NBA 2010-2011 (Read 12092 times)

All indications are that LeBron James is leaning toward signing with the Miami Heat on Thursday night, according to several sources with knowledge of the situation.

Quote

Barring a late change of heart, sources say James has decided to join fellow All-Stars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh to form a potential NBA powerhouse.

Quote

Chris Paul, one of James' best friends, has urged him to stay in Cleveland and let new Cavaliers coach Byron Scott coach him, according to sources. With such strong sentiment around him to not go to Miami, it's possible James could alter his decision.

Quote

James' family and friends are divided over his decision to play in Miami, according to sources.

Quote

While sources close to James insist his heart is in Cleveland and remaining with the Cavaliers was his preferred choice, they say he had concerns about signing a six-year deal there and ending up "31 years old, with bad knees and no title."

This has become interesting to me, but not in the sense that I thought even I'd expect.

The drama is overblown and I'm starting to hate on the whole situation in general. I'm losing respect for LeBron as we go along but I think he's giving the NBA exactly what Stern and the league want - anyone thought about baseball or football since the NBA championships ended? Nope, all about the NBA and the free agents, mostly LeBron. So from a marketing standpoint, kudos to them. But from a "I'm more important than God", though it hasn't been said, the whole thing is nauseating. Sign a contract, let the team hype it and be done with it. Humility, however, seems out of the question these days.

So Miami - good shot there with Wade and Bosh but I'm not sure they need LeBron to win to be honest. They've got a good inside/outside punch as of now and honestly I'm not convinced LeBron wouldn't screw that up by thinning the possessions out too much. The Heat need some role players and I think they're set. Who out of Bosh/James/Wade steps out of the limelight and plays the humble role player like happened with the Celtics? Certainly not James and how does that sit with the other two?

Honestly, if he really cares about winning and having a "legacy", I think Chicago is probably the best place for that.

I don't know about that Brian. Even if he wins a bunch of titles isn't Chicago still going to be Michal Jordan's town and the Bulls utlimately always his team? With Boozer and Rose I think there's a good shot at championships there for sure but I don't know if he overcomes Jordan's legacy.

New York could be doable with a quasi-twin towers thing with Stoudemire. But who else is there? Though New York may ultimately continue to build around that if he goes there I see titles being not much easier than in Cleveland but the city would certainly fit his ego which might be a big determining factor as well.

The biggest surprise to me is Cleveland? Doncha think you should have maybe gone after some of these other free agents as well? Miami already sort of had Wade but didn't sit on their laurels waiting for LeBron(or Wade or Bosh) to just m agically sign on. Cleveland seems to be going with the family/loyalty/heart strings approach and not much else. The Cavs lost in the semis to a bunch of old men (mostly) and clearly Clevaland needs another body or two and if you want to have a hope of competing with a Miami with Bosh/Wade shouldn't you have gone after someone too? It looks like Cleveland either wins with LeBron staying, a moral victory but no closer to a title, so why the lack of effort with others? I mean if LeBron leaves you're going to have a lot of cap room to sign exactly who?

I don't know about that Brian. Even if he wins a bunch of titles isn't Chicago still going to be Michal Jordan's town and the Bulls utlimately always his team? With Boozer and Rose I think there's a good shot at championships there for sure but I don't know if he overcomes Jordan's legacy.

That's an excellent point. As someone who followed the Bulls religiously from about 88 until they blew the team up post '98, to me that is always going to be Jordan's town. Heck, unless it got to a ridiculous number of championships, I think everyone would always be comparing any team to those '90s Bulls teams. Like you said, I don't think he ever overcomes Jordan's legacy there. I meant as far as forging his own legacy as "LeBron as a champ", the Bulls might be the best option (unless he's willing to wait for help in Cleveland/NY/NJ). If he joins the Heat, they sure could be awesome to watch and win a lot, but I think a lot of people will maybe look at it different because he had a lot of help (and help in their prime). Plus, like you said, who is going to take the back seat there? No one in Boston seemed to have a problem scoring less, whether it was Garnett, Allen, or Pierce. They were just about the wins. I could maybe see Bosh taking that route, almost by default, but is someone like Wade or James really going to be ok with averaging 16-18 ppg? We'll see I guess. In a way, I think it is exciting because it could be interesting to watch a team with three guys right in the prime of their careers playing together. Sure, we've had "Big 3" scenarios before, but often when 1-2 of the players were on the downhill side of their careers. Heck, you could even say that about the Celtics, although they have been able to make it work. Either way, I'll likely be watching tonight to see how it all goes down.

I don't know about that Brian. Even if he wins a bunch of titles isn't Chicago still going to be Michal Jordan's town and the Bulls utlimately always his team? With Boozer and Rose I think there's a good shot at championships there for sure but I don't know if he overcomes Jordan's legacy.

I've never bought into that line of argument (not just because I want him to come to Chicago either)... Kobe's doing just fine in Kareem's town.

The big three went to Bill Russell's team and won.

Lebron can make his own legacy in Chicago if he wants to, and if he doesn't come here because of Jordan's shadow, then he's scared and I doubt he'd want to be associated with that. If he goes elsewhere, it has to be about the pros of some other team, it can't be because of Jordan.

I don't know about that Brian. Even if he wins a bunch of titles isn't Chicago still going to be Michal Jordan's town and the Bulls utlimately always his team? With Boozer and Rose I think there's a good shot at championships there for sure but I don't know if he overcomes Jordan's legacy.

I've never bought into that line of argument (not just because I want him to come to Chicago either)... Kobe's doing just fine in Kareem's town.

The big three went to Bill Russell's team and won.

Just my thoughts Rob really, nothing more. But I'm not sure Kobe is a valid comparison because of the tremendous separation in years between the Kareem era and Kobe. Even Jerry West isn't that reverent about the Kareem years.

Same goes for the Celtics - Russell's teams were so long ago I never even saw them play. And some character named Bird came in there in the interim with some other goofs and won once or twice so I don't think the Celtics are an adequate comparison. There's a huge history of winning there over a very long period of time. The same can be said of the Lakers who won titles with some guy named West, another guy named Chamberlain before those average players named Kareem and Magic did anything prior to Kobe (who might have had some help from some dude named Shaq). Those are both legacies of winning championships that span decades and involve a number of stellar players over a great span of time. Chicago's winning history is encompassed enitirely by the Jordan era. I think that makes it different. Or maybe it just makes it another chapter in what will utlimately be Chicago's long standing legacy of championships - maybe LeBron is chapter 2?

15. What should LeBron do? Pick Chicago. That's where the rings are. The fact that he didn't say to Bosh, "Come to Chicago with me, we'll play with Rose and Noah and win six titles together" was the single most disappointing outcome of the summer. That team would have been a true juggernaut with pieces that actually complemented each other, unlike this pickup-basketball situation that's brewing in Miami. Even with Boozer there in Bosh's place -- and I think he's a great fit for them, with or without LeBron -- it could still translate to multiple titles, because Rose could have been the best second banana since Kobe in 2001.

For what it's worth I think the Boozer/Rose/LeBron pairing would actually work better than Wade/Bosh/LeBron for precisely the reason that Wade and Bosh are legitimate stars on their own. Boozer was an all-star but never struck me as the sould of the Jazz. Rose I guess currently is the star on the Bulls but I think adding LeBron would open the floor up for him a lot (which the addition of Boozer already should do). The only problem with Chicago would be the lack of a true center but I'm guessing with those three in place you might be able to start a coat rack and still win.

anyone thought about baseball or football since the NBA championships ended?

Football, yes.

Quote

Even if he wins a bunch of titles isn't Chicago still going to be Michal Jordan's town and the Bulls utlimately always his team?

Yep. It's either Cleveland or Miami for James. No way he joins Chicago. Rob knows how I feel about this. I'm in the camp that believes he's too scared to play in the shadow of the greatest player ever.

Every (home game) night he has to look at the giant statue in the parking lot.

Sorry about the spelling. When the reply box gets to full of text it starts doing funky things so I can't proof-read while going along and I'm too lazy to preview it. Mea culpa; due apologies to the Chicago faithful and Mr. Jordan.

Ugh. Who the hell wants to watch the Knicks or Nets this year? We've been waiting for this offseason forever.

I feel for you. I really do.Seeing that I've followed the Heat (Wade in particular) over the last seven years, I must say that I'm pretty psyched for the new season ... even if LeBron does choose a different team. I told the guys at work today that if LeBron does indeed choose Miami, expect me to be walking around with a constant erection for the next year. Minimum.

The news today about the LeBron James sweepstakes has been fast and furious. Sources all over the place are claiming that he's headed for the Knicks, or the Heat, or staying with the Cavs. The Bulls signed Carlos Boozer, though as of late they still haven't been labeled front runners. Perhaps the only person who knows where King James will be playing basketball next year is James himself.

...or maybe his accountant?

This rumor is coming out of the hard to believe, but seems to be true department. Earlier today, Eric Mansfield, a news anchor for WKYC-TV in Cleveland tweeted something rather interesting...

FLASH: Summit Co. processed request TODAY to change address on tax bill for BJ'S home from an LLC in Cleveland to a new address in Chicago

We confirmed that the address change has taken place. To verify yourself, follow these instructions:

Now, on the left, click the link for the 2008 tax bill. Compare the address listed for Rachael Investments in the summary section on the 2008 bill, vis-a-vis the 2009 bill.

You’ll see.

The relevant information is that the 2008 tax bill for the property, which is owned in the name of LeBron James and Rachael Investments LLC, was sent to an address in Ohio, c/o (care of) Kurt Schoeppler. Who is Kurt Schoeppler?

He's LBJ's financial advisor. The new c/o on the Chicago address is the CPA firm Weinberg Solheim Howell & Shain, located on LaSalle Street in downtown Chicago.

So what does this mean? It means that the property tax bills for the house that James owns in Cleveland are no longer being mailed to the Cleveland based office of his financial manager, but rather to a CPA firm in Chicago that caters to high net-worth individuals... including the first family.

Now there could be very legitimate reasons for hiring this CPA firm in Chicago, that have nothing to do with where he will play for the next several years. Perhaps James likes Chicago accountants. Perhaps the firm in question has a personal connection to his financial manager Schoeppler, or another of James' inner circle. Maybe he got a recommendation from the President himself. For all we know, someone on James' side could have picked a random name out of the yellowpages and decided to transfer James' accounting to them.

But... it still seems like an awful lot of trouble, shipping tax bills and the like, to a Chicago based CPA firm if LeBron's principal place of business is essentially going to be in NYC, Cleveland, or Miami. Even if Weinberg is an absolutely wonderful CPA firm, I would have a hard time believing there are not comparable firms, who also cater to high net-worth individuals (athletes, celebrities, etc) located in NYC or Miami.

Given all that, the conclusion I've come to is that:

This is real. LeBron James (or his financial manager) has really hired this accounting firm to do his taxes. It is not a red herring to confuse people on where he is going to play -- changing the address on ones' tax bill and expecting it to leak to the public is relatively ridiculous.

HOWEVER

It may have nothing at all to do with where he is going to be playing basketball.